1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to vehicle rear-view mirrors. More specifically, the invention is a brush-guard with adjustable rear-view mirrors.
2. Description of the Related Art
Sport utility vehicles, along with pick-up trucks and small trucks generally, have experienced a dramatic rise in popularity and use in recent years. Along with the increased use of such vehicles in general, there has been a trend towards increased size of such vehicles in comparison with other automobiles.
As vehicles increase in size, the task of providing the driver with adequate vision surrounding the vehicle becomes more difficult. Side and rear-view mirrors are used to give the driver a view alongside and behind the vehicle. However, as vehicle size increases, more space tends to be blocked from the field of view of the mirrors. Additionally, sport utility and similar vehicles are often used to pull any of a variety of trailers, adding further obstructions to the driver's field of view.
Typically, side-mounted rear view mirrors are simply made larger, or extended from the side of the vehicle, or both, to improve the field of view provided by the mirror. While increasing the size of the mirror increases it's field of view, and extending the mirror laterally from the side of the vehicle helps to extend a line-of-sight beyond the vehicle itself or a trailer in tow, these solutions are imperfect and tend to create additional problems.
As side-mounted mirrors reach further from the sides of a vehicle, either due to the increased size of the mirror or its increased lateral extension, the risk increases that the mirror will be damaged by contact with a variety of obstructions or other vehicles. Such mirrors are particularly vulnerable to damage in parking lots, in drive-through situations, in car washes, and such situations where the vehicle is brought into close proximity to fixed obstructions, pedestrians, and other vehicles.
A further disadvantage of side-mounted rear-view mirrors, which are typically located adjacent to the driver and passenger side windows, is that a passenger-side mirror may be obstructed from the driver's view by a passenger, or by packages or other articles placed in a passenger seat. Such an obstruction may block the driver's view of the mirror entirely, or require that the driver lean forward or otherwise reposition in order to use the mirror.
It is therefore desirable to provide an alternative to conventional side-mounted rear-view mirrors for larger vehicles. A preferred location for rear-view mirrors is at the front of the vehicle, a brush-guard or similar accessory providing an ideal mounting location.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,964,873, issued Jul. 3, 1934 to H. Dujardin, describes a bracket mounted to the right front fender of a vehicle in the same plane as the outer edge of the fender that may have a mirror attached to the bracket by a ball and socket joint, the bracket serving as a guide to determine the outer edge of the right front fender.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,607,273, issued Aug. 19, 1952 to S. D. Lark, discloses a mirror vertically extensible from a compartment defined in a center-mounted hood ornament. The mirror is mounted on a rod slidable in a tube, the mirror being spring-biased for concealment in the chamber. A pulley and cable mechanism manually operated by the driver of the vehicle can be used to raise the mirror, which includes a pin and slot arrangement for tilting the mirror to view the left rear or right rear of the vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,758,078, issued Jul. 19, 1988 to R. V. Bracamonte, teaches a rear view mirror mounted on a telescoping mast. The mast is located directly in front of the windshield. A motor is also included for rotating the mirror about a vertical axis. U.S. Pat. No. 3,420,490 issued Jan. 7, 1969 , shows a mirror mounted on a V-shaped bracket, an arm supporting the mirror being pivotally attached to the vertex of the V-shaped bracket so that the mirror is pivotal between a vertical and horizontal position.
Several rear view mirror mounts provide for lateral extension of the mirror, including devices described in U.S. Pat. No.3,059,790, issued Oct. 23, 1962 to R. W. Augustus (mirror for vehicles with a bucket extended and retracted by pulley and cable); U.S. Pat. No. 3,820,877 , issued Jun. 28, 1974 to J. E. Moyer (side mirror mounted to piston of hydraulic cylinder horizontally mounted in fender); U.S. Pat. No. 4,286,840, issued Sep. 1, 1983 to S. R. Covert (mirror mounted to horizontal arm attached to vertically oriented driveshaft driven by motor); U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,907,871 and 4,921,337issued Mar. 13, 1990 and May 1, 1990, respectively, to Hou et al. (first mirror extensible from chamber defined in housing of second mirror); U.S. Pat. No. 4,911,545, issued Mar. 27, 1990 to G. A. Miller (mirror mounted to piston of pneumatic or hydraulic cylinder in compartment in vehicle door or fender); U.S. Pat. No. 5,572,376, issued Nov. 5, 1996 to D. R. Pace (mirror housing mounted on a rack and operated by motor driven gearing); U.S. Pat. No. 6,213,609 , issued Apr. 10, 2001 to Foote et al. (mirror extensible laterally either manually or by motor-driven screw); and U.S. Pat. No. 6,239,928 , issued May 29, 2001 to Whitehead et al. (motor extensible laterally either manually or by motor-driven gears).
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. Thus a brush-guard with adjustable rear-view mirrors solving the aforementioned problems is desired.